Learn Chess Tactics & Checkmates
A free, interactive tactics course. Every lesson puts a real position on the board and asks you to find the move: first the named mating patterns, from the back rank to Anastasia's mate, then the motifs that win material. Each pattern is taught once, then drilled until you see it before you look for it.
4,956,402+ codders enrolled
75 lessons75 challenges
- Beginner friendly
Hands-on interactive lessons
Audio narration on every lesson
Quizzes to test your knowledge
Free certificate of completion
Syllabus
Section 1
Checkmate Patterns IDedicated page
Start sectionStartExpandCollapseThe mates every player must own: the back rank, the support mate, the smothered mate, hooks and Anastasia, ladders and rollers - finished with mate in one and mate in two gauntlets.The Back Rank
5 lessons5Back Rank II
5 lessons5The Support Mate
5 lessons5The Smothered Mate
5 lessons5Hook and Anastasia
5 lessons5Ladder and Rook Roller
5 lessons5Mate in One Gauntlet
5 lessons5Mate in Two Gauntlet
5 lessons5Section 2
Core MotifsDedicated page
Start sectionStartExpandCollapseThe tactics that win material: the fork, the pin, the skewer, the discovered attack, double check and trapped pieces - each drilled from real games, and a chapter on telling a tactic from a mirage.The Fork
5 lessons5The Pin
5 lessons5The Skewer
5 lessons5Discovered Attack
5 lessons5Double Check
5 lessons5Trapped Pieces
5 lessons5Tactic or Not?
5 lessons5
Learn by Playing
See every idea on a real board. Each lesson shows you the position, explains what is happening on it, then asks you a question about it.
Every game starts here. The two arrows are the classical first moves.
Build Your Chess Streak
Stay consistent and watch your progress grow! Track your daily chess habit, protect your streak with freeze days, and earn rewards for showing up every day.
12 days streak
Return tomorrow to keep your streak!
January 2026
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
Double or Nothing
Day 5 of 7
Streak Freeze
2 left
You're Not Alone in This
Compete on global leaderboards, invite friends to earn rewards, and celebrate each other's wins. Chess is better with friends!
1
2
3
Promotion zoneEvery way to learn
Read, listen, test yourself, or look up anything you've already covered. Every lesson meets you where you are.
The chessboard is a grid of 64 squares, 32 light and 32 dark, in a pattern where the colors always alternate.
Set it up so that each player has a light square in their bottom-right corner.
Files run up the board and ranks run across it - together they give every square its own name.
Prove Your Skills
Earn a certificate when you complete the course. Add it to your LinkedIn profile to show how far your chess has come.
Certificate of Completion
Chess Fundamentals
Add to LinkedInWhy learn chess tactics with Coddy
- Patterns before puzzles. Solving random puzzles teaches you slowly; this course teaches each pattern in its own lesson - what it looks like, what makes it work, how to set it up - and only then hands you a set of puzzles built around it.
- Every position is from a real game. The forks, pins and mating nets you drill here are the ones that actually happen at the board, ordered by how often they decide games at your level, not by how pretty they are.
- You play the move, and the board answers. A wrong move is refuted on the spot with the reason - the piece it hangs, the mate it walks into - rather than a red cross, and a right one is followed by the opponent's best reply so you play the whole combination out.
- Gauntlets at the end of each section. Ten sets of timed-feeling mate-in-one and mate-in-two puzzles, mixed across every pattern you have learned, so recognition becomes automatic before you move on.
Frequently asked questions about chess tactics
What are chess tactics?
What is the difference between a tactic and a strategy?
Which checkmate patterns should I learn first?
How do I get better at chess tactics?
How many puzzles are in this course?
Do I need to finish the beginner course first?
